


Everything Is the Same, yet Completely Different

by orphan_account



Category: Free!
Genre: Confessions, F/F, F/M, Getting Together, Humor, M/M, fluffy fluff, genderbend au, rin's crush is fruitless, slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-27
Updated: 2014-02-09
Packaged: 2018-01-10 05:25:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1155628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>No matter what form they take, they always end up stuck together. Forever bound to each other. Genderbend AU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In which Makoto is a girl

_Makoto and Haruka had known each other for as long as they could remember. They were neighbors and their parents got along well, so they were always together. The mothers would always giggle about how they were so cute together and that they were always holding each other’s hands. That they would make a cute couple when they were older. The two children didn’t understand the implication behind their mother’s words. They merely did what felt natural to them._

_“Haru-chan, we’ll always be together, won’t we?”_

_Haruka’s parents had some business to attend in the city and left Haru in the Tachibana’s care. Makoto’s parents thought it would be a nice idea to get out of the house for the day as well. So here they were, taking a trip to the ocean. The adults decided to relax on the beach and keep an eye on the kids from afar. They knew that as long as Makoto and Haruka stayed together that they would be fine._

_“Mn.” He nodded._

_Makoto smiled back. “I’m glad.”_

_They were walking along the shore, hand in hand. The waves were crashing at their feet and the sun was setting. The orange and red hues of the sky were beautiful. The whole scene was intimate, though the two children were unaware of it._

_Makoto stopped in her tracks all of a sudden. Realizing Makoto wasn’t moving with him, Haru turned around to face her._

_“Hey, Haru-chan.”_

_Haru waited patiently for her to continue on, letting her know that he was listening._

_“One day, I want to be Haru-chan’s bride.”_

\------------

Ever since high school started, Makoto made it a routine to pick Haru up from his house to take him to school. Knowing him, he’d stay in the tub as long as possible and skip out on breakfast or even school if he felt like it.

She had just finished dropping off the twins and hurried up the familiar flight of stairs to Haru’s house. She knocked on the front door and waited. Knowing she wouldn’t be getting a response, she quickly headed around to the back. Opening up the back door and heading straight into the bathroom, she noticed his clothes in the hamper. She walked over to the sliding door and knocked, unaware of the jammers also resting in the hamper.

“Haru, I’m coming in.”

She waited for a noise of acknowledgment before sliding the door open. Haru was leaning back in the tub, looking completely relaxed and soaking up as much water as possible before having to part with it.  Makoto smiled at that and walked over to the tub.

“Good morning, Haru.” She greeted him, holding out her hand to pull him out of the tub like always. He accepts it and lets her help him out. What Makoto didn’t realize is that today is different than the other days she pulled him out of the tub. Today, he seemed a little more…bare…and it sets Makoto’s cheeks on fire.

“Haru, why aren’t you wearing your jammers?!” Makoto’s voice cracked halfway through. She covered her face in her hands and turned away.

_He always wears his jammers in the tub! Why didn’t he today?!_

“Why do you sound so surprised?”

“I didn’t expect to see _little_ Haru-chan!”

Haru’s eyes squinted at that. “It’s not little.”

“You know I don’t mean it like that! I mean in comparison to the rest of you!”

“It can get bigger-”

“No! We are not having this conversation! I’m going downstairs to start breakfast. Come down when you’re finished in here.”

Makoto hurried out of the bathroom and Haru stared at her retreating form in frustration. He clicked his tongue and set to getting dressed.

\------------

Makoto sighed as she started up the rice cooker. She may not have been able to cook much, but she could at least make rice. Haru would end up making some mackerel for breakfast, so she might as well get a side dish going as well as some tea.

“What was that?”

No matter how many times she tried to distract herself, Makoto’s thoughts always came back to the scene of pulling Haru out of the tub from just moments before. She couldn’t help herself but think of how much he had grown since they were kids, in more ways than one.

Makoto’s cheeks began to heat up once again. She had the idea of banging her head against the counter to try and calm herself down but ultimately decided against it.

_I was ogling him, too! What would my parents think, having a pervert for a daughter? Better yet Haru…_

She sighed once more.

_Was he just playing with me?_

After all the years she had known Haru, she realized she had always held some sort of affection for him. Makoto wasn’t sure when her feelings for her childhood friend turned into love, maybe it always was and she hadn’t even realized it.

But even more so…

_“One day, I want to be Haru-chan’s bride.”_

Her grip on the counter tightened.

The problem behind it all was that she wasn’t even sure how Haru felt about her.

Makoto knew Haru better than anyone. She could read his mind and was always taking care of him, just as he had taken care of her when they were kids. But even so, she wasn’t sure if her feelings were returned. Even though she had a feeling they were, she felt it might have been cocky of her to think so, just because they had known each other for so long. If Haru had ever felt anything for her, they could have easily changed when he got older.

She was scared to look into his eyes for too long. She worried she might find something hidden within that she couldn’t bear to know. Was she a nuisance to him and too overbearing? Did he only view her as his childhood friend? Or could he possibly…

She heard footsteps coming from down the hallway and quickly pushed aside everything she was thinking about. She had plenty of time to dwell on it later. Now was the time to give her full attention to Haru.

\------------

The rest of the day went by normally up until it was time for swim practice. Nagisa’s eyes were glued to Makoto’s chest and all the attention was making her nervous.

“Mako-chan, your boobs sure did grow while I was gone!”

“N-Nagisa-chan!”

“Well it’s true! They’re so easy to spot when you swim.”

“They are?!”

Makoto had always felt self-conscious about her breasts, as well as her height. She filled out a lot faster than most girls her age did and she was one of the tallest girls at their school. No matter how tight the swimsuit was, it only flattened her chest slightly. Knowing that they were so obvious to others was worrisome. She had been picked on for her shyness growing up, she didn't need to add any other insecurities to the list.

“Nagisa, don’t worry her with unnecessary things.” Haru glared.

It made Makoto happy knowing that Haru knew how much her growth bothered her. He had been there the whole time it was happening, after all.

Nagisa seemed to completely ignore him, however. “Mine aren’t that big. It makes me a little envious.”

“But Nagisa-chan is cute the way she is. I’m a little envious of how petite you are.” Makoto smiled. What she wouldn’t give to not be as big as she was.

Nagisa then reached out and gave Makoto a little squeeze, making her squeak. “But Mako-chan can blow all the guys away with these bazookas!”

Rei, who had just come out of the locker room, squawked at the scene in front of him. “N-Nagisa-chan, stop that! It’s indecent!”

“Is Rei-chan jealous I’m not giving him enough attention?” Nagisa smirked cheekily. “Or does this actually excite Rei-chan?”

Rei’s face turned bright red. “N-No, it doesn’t!”

“Cut it out, Nagisa.” Haru seemed to be really annoyed with the blonde today, more so than usual.

“Oho~ Is Haru-chan jealous?” Nagisa gave another squeeze and Makoto tried her best not to squeak again. “I bet Haru-chan wants to touch them as well.”

_Eh?_

Haru’s eye twitched in frustration. “You’re making Makoto uncomfortable. You should stop.”

“Is it bothering you that much, Mako-chan?” Unable to answer, Makoto gave a faint nod. Nagisa quickly let go and held her hands in the air as if she had been caught. “Sorry about that.”

“You don’t sound as sorry as you should be.” Haru countered, still looking frustrated with the underclassman.

“But they’re soooo soft. I didn’t want to let go!”

“N-Nagisa-chan!” Makoto hid her face in embarrassment.

“What the hell are you guys doing? You’re being way too loud.”

The others turned to see Rin was walking in from the entrance to the pool. After making up with Rin, every once in a while he would visit them during swim practice when Samezuka didn't have swim practice.

“Ah! I bet Rin-chan wants to touch Mako-chan’s boobs, too.”

Rin’s entire face turned red the instant Nagisa’s words were processed.

“W-W-What?!” Haru’s glare quickly turned to Rin instead. “What the hell are you giving me that look for?!”

\------------

During practice, Makoto decided to run to the vending machines and get some drinks for everyone. Haru offered to go along, but Makoto assured she could go alone. She didn’t want to cut into Haru’s swimming practice. She knew how much he looked forward to practice every day and just the thought of Haru swimming with all his might left a smile on her face.

“Tachibana-san.”

Makoto was on her way to the vending machiens when she heard someone call out to her. When she turned around to look, she noticed he was one of the boys in the classroom next to hers, but he also looked strangely familair. She believed his name was Matsumoto Jun.

“Ah, Matsumoto-san.”

“Can I have a word with you?”

\------------

“What’s taking Mako-chan so long?” Nagisa whined. She was sitting on the edge of the pool with her feet hanging in the water, kicking water into the air. “I’m getting thirstyyyyyy.”

“She’ll probably take her time since you embarrassed her so much earlier.” Kou sighed. She had been getting papers for the club signed earlier, but was informed of Nagisa’s grabby hands when she got back.

Nagisa gasped. “Mako-chan would never keep someone waiting!”

“Nagisa-chan is right about that.” Rei said, adjusting his glasses.

“Guess there’s no helping it, I’ll-” Rin made to stand up but Haru put his hand out to stop him.

“No, it’s okay. I’ll go find her.”

\------------

It wasn’t unusual for Makoto to be confessed to. She seemed to be pretty popular with both boys and girls because of her kind personality. She had always turned down everyone that confessed to her, so today would be the same as always.

Or so she thought.

“Huh? You’re rejecting me?”

“Ah…”

“If there’s something wrong with me, go ahead and say it!”

Matsumoto Jun, however, didn’t seem to know when to give up.

“I’m sorry, Matsumoto-san. I just don’t feel that way towards you.” Makoto felt like hiding away. His complete personality switch startled her. She felt bad enough turning someone down, but being yelled at on top of that left her shaking. She never was good with confrontation.

“What? Do you have someone you like?”

An image of Haru flashed in her mind and she felt like crying.

She was a coward, she knew that. Harboring feelings for her childhood friend for years and never acting on them in fear of the worst, that Haru wouldn’t want to be as close with her as before and they would eventually drift apart.

But if her and Haru’s relationship was as strong as she believed it was, then she shouldn’t worry about confessing. If Haru didn’t return her feelings, then she shouldn’t put it past him to just accept it and move on and hope things would go back to normal between them. It might be strained, sure, but surely they could go back the way it was before she confessed. There was also the chance that Haru felt the same. If she does nothing, then nothing will change.

“Is it that guy with the sharp teeth that comes by here?”

“Eh? Rin? Oh, no, we’re not like that-”

“Then is it that Nanase?”

Makoto flinched.

“It is, isn’t it?” Jun scowled. “What’s so great about that guy? He's way too weird, never talking to anyone or smiling. He’s just some water obsessed freak-”

“Don’t talk about Haru like that.” Makoto glared up at Jun, something finally snapping inside of her. “You obviously know nothing about him so you have no right to talk badly about him.”

Jun was shocked to say the least. Makoto was never known to get angry with people and he might as well have been the first person to ever experience that intensity. What should have sent him running, however, only made him angrier.

He stepped forward, a little too close for Makoto’s comfort, and stared back down at her.

“You-” He reached his hand out only to have his wrist caught in midair.

Makoto, who had been too focused on Jun in front of her, hadn’t noticed the person who came up right beside her. She turned to look up to the person who came to her aid and saw the intense blue eyes that she loved so much, glaring at Jun in a way she had never seen before.

“Don’t touch her.”

“Tch. It’s just you.” Jun tried to pull his arm away, but Haru held a firm grip on his wrist.

“Matsumoto Jun, right?” Makoto was surprised to know that Haru knew his name. He never really bothered to learn the names of their classmates. “You used to go to our elementary school.”

_Ah, so that’s why he looked familiar._

“Yeah, so what of it?”

“You’re one of the guys who used to pick on Makoto.” Haru glared. “You made fun of her and now you have the guts to try and confess?”

Jun was starting to shrink back, but he stood firm.

“So I made a mistake. Who knew she would turn out looking like _that_?” Jun gestured to Makoto and all of a sudden she felt sick. Had all the guys who had confessed to her until now only been looking at her for her body?

“Get out of my sight.” Haru released his grip and Jun clicked his tongue before walking off.

Haru turned back to Makoto. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah…I’m fine. Thank you, Haru.”

“Don’t listen to whatever that jerk said. He isn’t worth your time.”

Haru’s words were always able to bring a smile to her face. They comforted her. “Haru is always helping me. It’s one of the things I love about you.”

Makoto froze the moment those words left her mouth.

She had never meant to confess her feelings in such a casual manner. Then again, Haru might not even think of them in the same way that Makoto meant them. No, Haru was really perceptive; of course he’d pick up on the meaning.

Makoto was becoming more and more flustered by the second and her face was heating up. She couldn’t look him in the eyes. “Ah, um, please just ignore that, I-”

“It’s fine.”

“Huh?”

Makoto looked up at Haru and really _looked_ at him for what felt like the first time in forever. His eyes showed so many emotions that it was hard to keep track. Happiness, compassion, relief; they were all good feelings. But one stood out the most out of all of them:

Love.

“Besides, didn’t you say you were going to be my bride?” A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. Every smile that Haru shared was rare, and each one made Makoto’s heart soar.

_Haru remembered that?_

“And you’re okay with that? With me?”

“I think you’re the only one who can put up with me.” Haru stopped for a moment to think of a better choice of words. It was hard for him to get his point across. “Not that I'd want anyone else.”

_Nailed it.  
_

“I…love Haru-chan.” Makoto cursed herself for suddenly spouting out whatever came to mind. She knew that Haru disliked the nickname, but she had never truly grown out of it. “Ah, sorry, you don’t like being called that anymore.”

“It’s fine. Nagisa still calls me that anyway.” Haru slightly grimaced at the thought.

Makoto hadn't expected Haru to allow it. Did he secretly like her calling him that?

“So, it’s okay to call you Haru-chan?”

“…Maybe not around others.”

Makoto smiled. “I’ll try to remember that, Haru- _chan_.”

Haru’s eye slightly twitched at the term. Maybe Haru would soon regret that decision.

“Ah!" Makoto suddenly rememebr why she left the pool in the first place. "I still haven’t gotten the drinks for everyone!”

“Come on, then.” Haru reached out his hand and took hold of Makoto’s before dragging her along. “They’re waiting for us.”

Makoto’s heart was about to burst. She couldn’t remember the last time they had held hands like this. It had been way too long. She really missed this feeling.

\------------

“What took you so long?!” Nagisa jumped up when she saw the two of them return. “I almost died of dehydration over here!”

“You know, you could have gotten something yourself if they were taking too long.” Rin countered.

“No way! A free drink is a free drink!” When Nagisa looked back over to Makoto and Haru, she noticed something different. “Ah! You two are holding hands!”

“What?”

“Seriously?”

_Oh no._

Having forgotten they were still holding hands, they quickly released them and awaited the onslaught of questions they were sure to be asked.


	2. In which Haruka is a girl

Just like any other day of school, Haruka sat in her bathtub, patiently waiting for Makoto to pick her up. He always insisted on taking her to school because he believed she couldn’t keep track of time and wouldn’t go to school if he didn’t help out. Haruka always dismissed his assumption, saying that wasn’t the case, but she didn’t stop him. She would say she was only doing it to indulge him, but that was a complete lie. The fact was that she enjoyed having him pick her up and take her to school, and she was sure that he knew that as well.

Based on the lighting she saw creep in from her bathroom window, it was hard to tell since it was so tiny and close to the ceiling, she sensed it was around the time Makoto would usually arrive.

She heard the shuffling of feet outside the bathroom door and then a light knock on the door.

“Haruka, I’m coming in.”

_Right on time._

Haruka made a small noise of approval.

She remembered the time that she didn’t wear her bathing suit in the tub, thinking it would be an interesting test to see what Makoto would do. She denied the fact that she actually wanted Makoto to make a move on her.

But when Makoto had walked in after knocking, he noticed right away that her swimsuit straps weren’t visible and walked right out the door without looking any further, never even catching a glimpse. Haruka would never admit she was slightly disappointed over nothing happening, especially since she didn’t even get to see a flustered Makoto.

She’s never bothered trying it again, but now whenever Makoto slides the bathroom door open, he peers his head in slightly to make sure if he can see her swimsuit straps or not. She doesn’t bother telling him it was only a one-time thing; it amuses her way too much.

Haruka watched as the bathroom door slid open slightly and saw Makoto’s eyes peer into the room. Haruka did her best to hold back her smile, which Makoto didn’t seem to notice. After seeing the coast was clear, he fully opened the door and walked over to the bathtub.

Holding his hand out, he smiled genuinely at her. “Good morning, Haruka.”

Haruka didn’t waste any time taking his hand and letting him help her out of the bathtub. He pulled a towel out from the towel rack and offered it to her. “Do you want me to dry your hair for you?”

Haruka pouted, blushing slightly. “There’s no need for that.”

Makoto laughed softly as she took the towel from his grasp.

“I’ll head down to the kitchen and get breakfast started. You’ll want mackerel, right?”

Haruka nodded. “With toast.”

Makoto smiled. “I can do that at least.”

Just before Makoto left the bathroom, Haruka called out to him.

“I made you lunch today.”

Makoto turned to look at her and his face lit up. It wasn’t often that Haruka made lunch for Makoto, even though she wishes she could. She knows how much Makoto loves her cooking and how happy it makes him.

“I’ll look forward to it.” He smiled once more before closing the door behind him.

Once Haruka knew Makoto was far gone, she sighed.

She wished she could be more honest with herself. She would have loved for Makoto to dry her hair for her and spoil her completely. Not that he doesn’t spoil her enough already, but there was a difference. They weren’t actually together. She knew she loved Makoto and he loved her, but they had never confirmed anything or made it official. And even though Makoto was completely obvious in his affection for her, she wasn’t sure if he fully understood the extent of her feelings for him.

But that was going to change today.

\------------

The day continued on as usual. They walked to school together after eating breakfast and sat in their seats next to each other. While Makoto would sometimes make small talk with classmates, Haruka stared out the window.

“Tachibana-kun, I made lunch for you.”

Haruka’s ears perked up at that. She turned to look and saw one of the girls from another class holding out a bento to Makoto. It wasn’t unusual for girls to bring him lunch, but he always refused them. It still bothered her more than she could describe.

“Sorry, I already have a lunch for today. Thank you, though.”

The boy who sits next to Makoto, who seemed to be eavesdropping, looked down and saw the bento wrapped in a blue cloth. Everyone in the class knew that Makoto’s lunches from home were always wrapped in an orange cloth. “Eh? Did Tachibana actually accept a girl’s lunch?”

Makoto’s cheeks turned bright red and the others in the surrounding desks took notice of it.

“Really?!”

“That’s unusual.”

“Is she cute?”

Haruka was also interested to hear his answer.

Makoto, after calming his nerves, smiled so brightly that she was sure everyone in the room would fall for him. “The cutest.”

Haruka turned her head away quickly, blushing furiously.

_Does he have no shame?! I’m right here!_

While her head was turned away. Haruka didn’t notice the knowing glances her classmates were giving her upon seeing her reaction. She also didn’t notice the glare coming from the girl who had presented her own lunch to Makoto.

\------------

It was now lunchtime, the moment Haruka had been waiting for.

“Haruka, let’s eat lunch on the roof.”

Haruka was still putting away all her items from her desk. “I’ll meet you there.”

Makoto cheerfully nodded and went on ahead.

It didn’t take long for Haruka to clean up and she was soon leaving the classroom as well. She knew Makoto wouldn’t start eating without her, but she wanted to see his reaction as soon as possible. But that was quickly interrupted when a girl stopped her in her tracks on her way to the roof.

“We need to talk.” The girl stood with her arms folded across her chest.

Haruka’s brows furrowed when she realized it was the girl from earlier.

“You’re the one who gave Tachibana-kun lunch, aren’t you?”

Haruka felt no need to indulge her so she stayed silent, hoping this would hurry up and end so she could meet up with Makoto. She didn’t understand why she was acting so high and mighty.

The silence gave away Haruka’s answer. “You know, that’s really not fair, Nanase.”

Haruka finally turned to look at her. “Excuse me?”

“You have all these guys flocking to you _and_ you have Tachibana-kun? Don’t you think you’re hogging him all to yourself when there are plenty of others for you to choose from? Have you ever heard of sharing?”

Haruka grew angrier the more she spoke, but she reined it all in, trying to keep her cool. “I don’t recall Makoto ever saying he wanted to be shared. Besides, he likes who he likes. You can’t really change that if he’s not interested.”  

The girl’s face turned red with rage. “You two aren’t even dating!”

“I don’t think our relationship has anything to do with you.” Haruka, having had enough of the conversation and the girl standing in front of her, moved past her. She stopped when they were side by side and gave her a half smile. “But if anything happens to change between us, I’ll make sure you’re the first to know.”

Haruka walked off without another glance back at her.

_Ah, I let a nasty side of me show._

The girl, who Haruka hadn’t bothered to catch her name, did have a point, though. Haruka did get frequent confessions from guys, but she turned them all away.  They called her “interesting” and “cute” but she knew that if they spent one day with her that they would be tired of her by the next.

That’s where those guys and Makoto happened to be different, because Makoto had been by her side for as long as she could remember and he was _still_ there.

And that’s why Haruka needed to let Makoto know. So no one would be able to take him away from her.

Besides, if she waited too long then Rin would sink her teeth into him. They had been fighting over Makoto behind his back since they met and he _still_ hadn’t realized it, not that Rin stood much of a chance against her.

Haruka’s lips quirked up slightly in a smile as she walked up the stairs to the roof.

\------------

Haruka was right; Makoto had waited patiently for her before eating. Rei and Nagisa were also there, though it looked like Nagisa couldn’t hold himself back and had already started eating while Rei chastised him.

Makoto looked up at her curiously when she walked over to him. “That took longer than usual. Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, it’s fine.”

She didn’t want to worry Makoto over girl troubles. She also wasn’t sure how Makoto would think of her possessive side.

Just when she was about to sit, Rei looked away from Nagisa and saw she had arrived. “Ah, Haruka-senpai, can I talk to you for a moment?”

Haruka’s eyebrows twitched slightly in irritation. She kept getting stopped when all she wanted to do was eat with Makoto.

Nevertheless, she gave in and sighed. “Sure.”

Rei stood up and motioned for them to walk a few feet away from the group so no one could hear their conversation. She leaned in closely and whispered for good measure. “I heard you made Makoto-senpai’s lunch.”

Haruka was genuinely curious as to why Rei wanted to know. “Yes.”

Rei’s cheeks blushed slightly and she pushed her glasses up her nose. “I-I-In that case, I-I would like you to teach me how to make a bento as well.”

Haruka glared. “You’re not giving it to Makoto.”

Rei’s cheeks burned even redder at the accusation. “It’s not for Makoto-senpai!”

Haruka knew Rei wouldn’t dare lay a hand on Makoto, but she couldn’t help but ask after what happened earlier. Though the question remained why Rei wanted to make a bento and for who.

“Is it for Nagisa?”

If Rei’s face could turn even redder, then it surely did just then. Rei didn’t flat out deny this accusation, leaving Haruka to know she was spot on in her guess.

“C-Could you, please?”

Haruka gave a slight smile. “Okay.”

Rei’s face brightened up and she threw her arms around Haruka and hugged her. Nagisa must have been rubbing off on her far more than she expected. “Thank you, Haruka-senpai!”

Haruka gently pushed her away, not wanting to hurt her feelings but simply feeling uncomfortable with the random burst of affection. “You can come over to my house this weekend and I can teach you. Prepare yourself.”

Though Rei felt wary of the warning, she happily nodded and went back to sit next to Nagisa. Haruka followed after and, finally, took her long awaited seat next to Makoto.

Makoto, having seen the hug and random shouts, looked even more confused and Nagisa could tell.

“Girl talk, Mako-chan. You don’t want to know.”

Haruka tried to hold back a smile from showing. _Yeah, we don’t want you to know. Would be a waste of a surprise._

Makoto gave up on getting an answer from then and started unwrapping the cloth covering the bento Haruka had given him. The bento case was pink and Haruka watched Makoto from the corner of her eye as he took off the cover, trying to be as discreet as possible. Haruka noticed Makoto’s eyes widen at the unveil and waited patiently to see what his next reaction would be.

Haruka had spent hours creating what she liked to call her masterpiece. She wanted to make sure everything was perfect, right down to cooking Makoto’s favorite side dishes, making sure they all tasted delicious, organizing it in an appealing fashion, but what made it different from the other bentos she had made for Makoto in the past was one simple thing.

The decoration she had put in the rice was a big, red heart.

It was the easiest way of confessing that Haruka could think of. She had mulled over if just the heart would be enough, thinking of adding in an “I” and “U” to make it more effective and easy to understand, but Haruka scratched that idea, thinking it was way too embarrassing for her. She only hoped that Makoto would understand what she was trying to convey, just like always.

Makoto finally turned to look at Haruka and what she saw was one of the happiest smiles she had ever seen him make, a light blush forming on his cheeks. “Thank you, Haruka.”

Haruka’s eyes widened and she blushed slightly as she turned away.

_So he did understand._

Haruka picked at her rice, not able to make eye contact with Makoto out of sheer embarrassment.

After they had finished eating and put their bentos to the side, Haruka felt a hand cautiously cover her own. Haruka looked down at the hand and then back up at Makoto, who was looking away, nervous and slightly flustered. Haruka smiled and intertwined their fingers together.

She was really happy.

“Ah! Mako-chan, Haru-chan, No PDA allowed!”

Makoto, startled at being caught, tried to pull his hand away but Haruka held on tightly, not wanting to let go. This only seemed to make Makoto even more flustered.

Nagisa grinned. “Rin-chan is gonna have a fit when she finds out.”

Makoto tilted his head to the side in confusion and Haruka glared at Nagisa.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More jealous Haru, flustered Makoto and now Rei is a girl!
> 
> I debated for a long time on how Makoto should refer to Haru, but just decided to go with Haruka since she is a girl in this chapter and wouldn't worry about the girly name as much. Makoto would have still called her "Haru-chan" as a kid and then she would tell him to call her by her full name.
> 
> I didn't make it as obvious in the previous chapter, but I'm having Rin like Makoto in all of these chapters. It's my guilty pleasure ship so I wanted to add that in there, even though Rin didn't appear in this chapter.


	3. In which Makoto and Haruka are both girls

Makoto always picked up Haruka on school days to make sure she got out of the bathtub. If she’s not careful she could stay in there until the water became room temperature and she would get sick. Even though Makoto would always be there to take care of her if she got sick, she would like to avoid Haruka becoming sick in the first place.

“Haru-chan, I’m coming in.”

Makoto didn’t wait for an answer before sliding the door to the bathroom open. Haruka was, of course, in the bathtub, staring in her direction when the door slid open. Makoto smiled and walked over to the tub, holding her hand out.

“Good morning, Haruka.”

Haruka took her hand and was helped out of the water. Makoto couldn’t help but chuckle at seeing the swimsuit. “Wearing your swimsuit in the bathtub again?”

“Why? Did you not want me to?” Haruka teased.

“Well it’s not like it’s anything I haven’t seen before.” Makoto answered, fully aware that her statement could be taken in more than one way.

“Maybe I’ll surprise you next time, then.” She smirked.

Makoto hummed in response. “I’ll look forward to it, then.”

Haruka stepped out of the tub while Makoto fetched a towel from the towel rack and started drying off Haruka’s hair, which made the latter pout slightly. “I can do that myself.”

“But I like drying Haru-chan’s hair. It’s so soft and pretty.” She smiled.

Haruka turned her head to the side, trying to fight off the blush that was forming. Makoto knew she liked the nickname, when it was coming from her at least, so she made sure to call her that when they were alone. Haruka never griped about it once she was found out, so it was another win for Makoto.

When Makoto was finished, she handed the towel over to Haruka so she could finish drying off. “I’ll go start the tea and get the mackerel ready for you. We can start cooking once you’re finished.”

Haruka nodded and Makoto couldn’t help herself when she leaned in and pecked her on the cheek before heading down to the kitchen. Haruka continued to dry herself off, blushing with the faintest hint of a smile showing.

\----------

Lunchtime was always loud and fun, probably because one Hazuki Nagisa was present.

“Awwww no faiiiiiir. I want Haru-chan to make me bento!” She whined as she fell back onto the concrete. She wriggled around in an attempt to gain sympathy, maybe even a bite of Haruka’s handmade bento.

“No.” Haruka frowned.

“Why nooooooooot?” Nagisa continued to whine and squirm.

Makoto felt slightly bad for Nagisa. They all knew how great a cook Haruka was and yet Haruka only ever made Makoto lunch. Even though Makoto felt bad, she really didn’t want to hand over any part of Haruka’s bento. She secretly loved the special treatment.

Just when Makoto was going to offer a bit of her lunch to Nagisa, which Haruka had glared at her for trying, Rei spoke up.

“Nagisa-chan, if you’d like a bento then I could always make one for you.” Rei pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. Her cheeks were slightly red and Makoto was surprised she was able to say it without stuttering. Maybe she had been practicing?

Nagisa shot up from the ground and turned to look at Rei, face brightening. “Really?!”

Makoto let out a sigh of relief and the rest of their break went by smoothly.

Crisis averted.

\----------

Samezuka’s swim team didn’t usually have practice on Fridays, giving Rin an opportunity to join the Iwatobi swim practice and be with her old friends along with her newly formed one.

“Mako-chan, your boobs are, like, wooooooah!”

Getting dressed after swim practice was also loud and fun, thanks again to one Hazuki Nagisa.

Makoto was just buttoning up her shirt when Nagisa had noticed how Makoto was struggling to button up the buttons around her chest area. It looked as if they had grown once again, even if only slightly. Haruka had glared at her for staring which only egged Nagisa on more and she started creeping closer to Makoto with grabby hands.

“Nagisa-chan!” Rei chided.

Rin grinned. “Watch out, Nagisa. You’re making more than just Haruka jealous.”

Rei’s cheeks turned a rosy color. “Hey!”

“You know you wanna touch them, too, Rin-chan.” Nagisa pouted.

Rin’s eyebrow rose slightly. “It’s not like I don’t have any. What’s the big deal?”

“They’re _Mako-chan’s_ boobs.” Nagisa’s grin grew when Rin started blushing.

Makoto felt it was her duty, once again, to play peacemaker. “Come on, you guys, enough joking arou-”

“None of you are getting handsy with Makoto.”

Makoto stopped and looked at Haruka, who was glaring at the others. “Haruka…”

She secretly liked it when Haruka was jealous. It showed Makoto how much she cared about her, in an odd, roundabout way. It was like she was protecting her, just like when they were kids, and it made her heart flutter.

Suddenly there was a spark in Haruka’s eyes. “Only I’m allowed to touch.”

Makoto placed a hand on her face and inwardly sighed. She should have known better. Now she was only being possessive.

Rei adjusted her glasses. “Haruka-senpai is so bold.”

Nagisa whistled. “Well that’s one way to confess.”

Rin scowled. “Are you kidding me? That’s the dumbest confession I’ve ever heard.”

Haru’s eyebrow quirked up slightly. “It’s not a confession. Makoto already knows.”

Rin looked back at them in mild confusion. “What the-” He searched Makoto’s face and saw she wasn’t even phased by Haruka’s words. “Makoto knows?”

“Yes?” Makoto replied reflexively at the mention of her name.

“Wait, are you two together?” Rin pointed between the two of them.

“We’re always together.” Haru stated, as if the fact was obvious enough.

“No, no, I mean are you _together_ together. _Dating_.” Rin felt the need to add on to that in case they were, in fact, that dense.

Haru and Makoto turned to look at each other before Makoto finally spoke up. “Yes?”

“Why did you pause?!”

Makoto rubbed at the back of her neck; being put on the spot always made her nervous. “Well, we had never outright confirmed it with each other but we always assumed.”

“ _Always_?” Rin squinted at Haruka. “How long have you two been together?”

Haruka answered without missing a beat. “Always.”

“Are you serious?!” Rin’s mouth hung open.

Makoto tilted her head to the side. “Is it that strange?”

“You can’t just already _know_ that kind of stuff!” Rin folded her arms in front of her chest. “I always knew you two were close, but do you guys really not know how dating works?”

Nagisa grinned. “Rin-chan is just upset because she lost the battle a long time ago.”

“Shut it, Nagisa!” Rin growled.

Makoto and Haruka looked on as Rin squabbled with Nagisa while Rei tried to calm them down; Makoto fraught with worry.

\----------

The walk home was quieter than usual. Makoto didn’t bother to try and start any conversations to keep Haruka’s attention, instead deciding on mulling over her thoughts. Rin’s words had struck a chord in her. Was the way that she had done things with Haru wrong?

“Say, Haru-chan, do you want-”

Haruka cut Makoto off, knowing exactly what she was going to say. “No.”

“Eh?” Makoto’s head shot back to look at her, her eyebrows scrunched up in confusion.

Sensing Makoto’s worry, she clarified. “Don’t ask me that.”

This only confused her more. “Why not?”

Haruka gave her a look, wondering why she even had to explain. “Because we were already dating; we both understood that. If you ask me out now then it will seem like we weren’t before.”

Makoto hadn’t thought about that. She ducked her head and watched her feet as she walked. She didn’t want to feel like all the times she had spent with Haruka weren’t as a couple.

“We’re different. We don’t need to abide by the ‘laws’ that Rin and others have set for relationships. We should just continue to do things our own way. Rin is just jealous, anyways”

Makoto nodded in understanding. Haruka’s words always seemed to put her at ease.

“Besides, we’ve already done plenty of things that only couples do.”

When Makoto looked up to face Haruka again, she saw a glint of mischief in her eyes and the makings of a smile on her lips. Makoto’s whole face turned red.

“Haruka! Don’t say those things in public!”

“Who am I going to offend?” Haruka quirked an eyebrow and looked around to see no one in sight. “The sidewalk?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm making these chapters shorter and shorter, sorry! I didn't have much planned for this chapter other than having cuties Mako and Haru already being together. I feel like since they're the same genders that they're able to spend more time together and understand each other better, so them being together is natural, just like they are as boys. I didn't want to add drama to this one and decided on poor fluff.
> 
> I decided to add in one more chapter to end it all. It should be up either tomorrow or Sunday.


	4. In which Makoto and Haruka are boys again

Makoto’s eyes shot open as if he had been shocked, though his breathing was even and he felt strangely relaxed. Had he been dreaming? He situated himself slightly and realized he was in Haru’s bed, tangled in his sheets, and naked. There was no light seeping through the window and Makoto noticed the sun had already set.  Makoto mused that Haru went to go shower while he was asleep and that was the reasoning behind his absence.

He sat up and was about to get out of bed to get his phone when he noticed it sitting on the nightstand, Haru most likely having left it there so he could contact his parents. Picking up the phone, Makoto sent a quick text to his mother to tell her he would be spending the night at Haru’s. He had originally told them he would be going over to Haru’s house to do homework, but they always ended up doing more than that and he would stay later than expected. He was still working up the courage to confess his relationship status with Haru to his parents, even though he more or less guessed that they already knew; they were pretty sharp.

The brunet placed his phone back onto the nightstand. He remembered the string of dreams so well, which was unheard of for him. He could never remember his dreams to save his life, especially ones as vivid as the dreams he just experienced. “That was odd.”

“What was?”

Makoto eyes scanned towards the doorway and saw Haru walking into the room, wearing sleep shorts and one of his shirts that he must have taken from his house without him noticing. He was also sporting a towel that hung over his shoulders.

Makoto smiled as he watched him move about. “The dream I had was really strange.”

One of Haru’s eyebrows quirked up slightly and he paused his movements, giving him his full attention.

And that was the beginning of Makoto’s ramblings.

“Well, it was more like three dreams in one, but _I_ was a girl and then _you_ were a girl and then we were _both_ girls and we hadn’t gotten together yet and we confessed and were really popular–wait, are we really that popular, Haru?” Makoto paused slightly in thought before continuing on. “Anyway, Rin apparently liked me-”

Haru’s eyebrow twitched.

“-Which was really strange and Nagisa really liked my breasts and kept trying to touch them-”

Haru’s eyebrow twitched again, his jealousy slowly rising.

Makoto hid his face in his hands. “-Oh god that sounds really weird doesn’t it-”

“Makoto.” Thankfully, Haru stopped him before he could continue any further and hurt himself.

Makoto looked up at his boyfriend. “Yes?”

During the duration of Makoto’s word vomit, Haru had walked over to him and was now hovering over him. He was looking at him, deathly serious. “Did Nagisa give you anything recently? Maybe something you thought looked like candy or-”

“No, Haru, he didn’t!” Makoto sputtered. “It was just a dream!”

After a brief moment of intense staring, Haru relaxed and shrugged his shoulders before plopping down on the bed beside Makoto. He quickly rubbed his hair with the towel around his shoulders and then tossed it onto a pile on the floor. He set his hands behind him on the bed and leaned into them, relaxing even further.

Without realizing it, Makoto started smiling and continued on with his story. “It makes me a little happy, though.”

Turning his head to face his boyfriend, Haru furrowed his brows. “How come?”

Makoto looked down at his hands thoughtfully, his smile never faltering. “Because even though some things were different, there were a lot of things that never changed. I could still read Haru’s mind and vice versa, our routine stayed the same, we were still best friends and-” Makoto looked up into Haru’s eyes. “We still ended up together.”

Haru, for the first time since Makoto woke up, smiled; his eyes shining and speaking the words he couldn’t say.

“ _Doesn’t that mean we’d fall for each other no matter what?”_

“Yeah.” Makoto answered, as if Haru had spoken his thoughts out loud. His cheeks flushed and his smile grew even bigger. “We’ll always be together.”

Haru pulled his legs up off of the floor and climbed further onto the bed, towards Makoto. He leaned in and Makoto met him halfway in a kiss. It was sweet and innocent, far more than the ones they were sharing a few hours ago. But the tender moment soon disappeared when Makoto started giggling in-between kisses.

Haru pulled back and gave him a funny look. “What’s so funny?”

It was becoming harder for Makoto to contain his laughter. “I called _it_ ‘little Haru-chan’.”

Haru’s eyes squinted. “It’s not little.”

Makoto snorted, quickly covering his mouth to try and hold it in. “You said that in the dream.”

Haru’s eyebrows furrowed further. “It can get bigger.”

Makoto fell back onto the bed, unable to hold back any longer, tears welling up in the corner of his eyes from laughing so hard. “You said that, too!”

Words could no longer reach Makoto, so Haru decided on using actions instead to try and prove his point. It wasn’t a school night; they could afford to go for another round.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's a wrap. Hope you guys liked it. :)
> 
> When working on chapter two I had the idea to add a fourth chapter where they were back to normal. I had it to where Makoto just dreamed all of it up, but if you want you can think of it as Makoto having visions of actual alternate universes. He is the chosen one.
> 
> Also sorry I felt the need to add the dick talk from chapter one again. I thought it would be a fun way to end it since it started everything.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry if this sucks and my humor is crap. I wrote all of this today, which really surprised me. I've had this idea for doing a three part genderbend au in my head for a while now and finally started typing it out today. This chapter was dealing with a female Makoto and the next one will be a female Haru.
> 
> I feel like Makoto would definitely have confidence issues as a woman. I also just really wanted to write an overprotective, jealous Haru. I also made Nagisa a girl for the whole co-ed swim team. I don't think Nagisa would be any different as a girl, besides boobs.
> 
> Because of them being different genders they’re not used to seeing each other naked. I debated on whether or not I would add the part about Haru not wearing his jammers but decided to go with it in case I decided to write the smut one-shot I have somewhat planned in my head. Not sure if I'll actually write it or not, since I don't feel confident in it, but who knows.


End file.
